Many people do not like to stay at home on holidays. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} or do something exciting. So people from the country go to the city and people from the city go to the country for holidays. During the holidays, trains, buses and planes are all very busy. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} . Many people take cars or buses for travelling.

    Last May Day my family went to the country by car for our holidays. There was too much traffic on the road,  {#blank#}3{#/blank#} . It took us about an hour to get out of the town. After some time, we came to a farm. It was clean and beautiful. The animals were very cute, and {#blank#}4{#/blank#} , so we stopped and took the food, fruit and drinks out of the car. {#blank#}5{#/blank#} . Suddenly a strong wind blew and soon it started to rain. We had to run back to our car and had our picnic in the car. Then we drove back home. We had a trip like this. How bad it was.

{#blank#}1{#/blank#}Keep your food safe. At night put it in bags. Hang the bags from the trees. Eat food before it goes bad(变质). Keep food and water in closed boxes or bottles.

{#blank#}2{#/blank#}Find a place for your camp an hour before it gets dark. Look for a dry place. Don't make your camp under trees or very near a river. Look for firewood before it gets dark.

{#blank#}3{#/blank#}In very hot countries, don't walk in the middle of the day. Walk in the early morning before the sun conies up.

{#blank#}4{#/blank#}There are dangerous animals in some countries. Before you put on your shoes in the morning, hit them on the ground. There may be animals inside them. Do the same with your sleeping bag before you go to sleep.

{#blank#}5{#/blank#}If you are walking, you need to drink lots of water. In very hot countries you may need 5~8 litres(升)of water a day. If you are thirsty, stop and drink.

Huge Waves Destroying Arctic Ice Faster than Expected

    Ice covers much of the Arctic Ocean (北冰洋). Some pieces of ice are huge, like moving islands. As temperatures have increased, however, some of the ice has begun to disappear. Scientists have discovered huge waves (海浪) in the arctic waters.

    The waves were discovered by accident in May, 2010. Scientist Aleksey Marchenko and his students set out on a trip. They wanted to study the icy waters.

    On May 2, the ship traveled east and stopped next to a large chunk of ice around 50 miles from the small island of Hopen. Marchenko prepared to lead his students out onto the ice.

    "We were ready to go but when I went out, I discovered many cracks (裂缝) around," he remembers.

    He decided to move the ship deeper into the ice to keep safe. The farther in they went, he thought, the harder the ice would become. As they pushed forward, however, the ship experienced small waves, and then bigger ones. Soon, the waves broke up the ice around the ship into thousands of smaller pieces.

    Within an hour, Marchenko and his team saw a wave that was about 13 feet high. The ship's navigation (航行) system finally recorded the largest waves. They were more than 20 feet in height. The waves were so strong that they forced huge pieces of ice to jump up and down, breaking the ice into smaller pieces within just one hour. Scientists had never imagined that the process could happen so fast. The waves in these areas used to be small.

    The speed and force of the huge waves there makes it impossible to know in advance when they are coming. That could be dangerous for navigators and local communities who are unprepared for huge waves or depend on sea ice to protect them. Wildlife like polar bears and walruses that depend on sea ice to live is also in danger.

    Some scientists think people will soon see even bigger waves in these icy waters. As waves break up ice, the seas will become more open, and the waves will get even stronger. There are stormy times ahead.

    It is widely accepted that television is playing an important part in people's lives. But, there is a heated discussion as to whether television does good or harm.

    Television keeps one learning more about present events, allows one to follow the most re­cent developments in politics and science, and offers various programs which are .both instructive and exciting. The most distant countries, the strangest customs and the most attractive scenes of nature are brought right into one's room or house.

    However, some people insist that television is bad rather than good. They argue that it has brought about many serious problems. The major one is its effects on young people. Children are now so used to getting their information and entertainment from television that their ability to read and write as well as physical ability has been greatly weakened. Even worse than that, vulgar(庸俗的) advertisements and poor programs may develop their bad tastes, shape their view points badly towards human life to such a degree that their minds might be destroyed.

    In a word, television has both advantages and disadvantages. Whatever effects it has, one point is certain, television in itself is neither good nor bad. It is the use to which it is put that decides its value to society.

Improving Listening Sills in the Classroom

    Listening is a skill that needs to be learned and used well to be able to succeed in any environment. In the classroom, great listening skills mean the difference between a successful student and one who struggles (挣扎) in school.

    Come to class rested.

    {#blank#}1{#/blank#} When your body is well taken care of, your mental (精神的) focus will be much better. If you come to class sleepy or tired, it may be impossible for you to keep your eyes open and concentrate (集中) on what the teacher is saying.

    {#blank#}2{#/blank#}

    Have everything you need at the start of the class. If you have homework, make sure you are ready to hand it in. Bring out your notebook and pen so you can start taking down notes Also, try to read your textbooks before coming into class. It will help you understand more easily what your teacher is talking about.

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#}

    When you're in the front of the class, you'll have an easier time hearing what the teacher has to say you won't have a daydream when the teacher is near you.

    Take down notes.

    Write down what you hear in class. {#blank#}4{#/blank#} It will also make you concentrate more on what is being said So you can properly take notes. Try to concentrate when you are in class so that you are able to get the key points during a lecture. {#blank#}5{#/blank#} Once you learn techniques to help you with this skill, you should see an improvement in your listening.

    Every country has its own way of cooking. American people have their own way of cooking, don't they?

    {#blank#}1{#/blank#} But if you think that American people don't like cooking, you are wrong. It's true that most Americans eat fast food for their breakfast and lunch. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} Parents see the importance of teaching their children how to cook, and most Americans say that home-cooked meals are the best.

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#} For example, baking(烘烤 )is the most popular way of cooking in America {#blank#}4{#/blank#} American cooks(厨师) pay attention to(注意) the balance of food. When planning a big meal, they try to cook meat, a few vegetables, some bread and sweet food. {#blank#}5{#/blank#}_ There are so many kinds of colorful foods, so the meal is healthy and looks beautiful, too.

A. But they also think cooking is interesting

B. They also like to make the meal look beautiful

C. Most people in the United States like fast food

D. Americans have their own way of cooking

E. Most American families have ovens (烤箱)